Overview
- On July 21, GRSE in Kolkata launched INS Ajay, completing an eight-craft contract to deliver specialised shallow water anti-submarine vessels to the Indian Navy.
- Each 77.6-metre ship features low-draught hulls, advanced hull-mounted and variable-depth sonars, and is armed with lightweight torpedoes, ASW rockets and sea mines.
- These shallow water crafts integrate with Boeing P-8I Poseidon patrol aircraft, Kamorta-class corvettes, MH-60R Seahawk helicopters and Scorpene-class submarines in India’s layered ASW network.
- The GRSE-built fleet emphasizes high indigenous content and replaces ageing Abhay-class corvettes, underscoring India’s push for self-reliant naval defence.
- Looking ahead, India plans to retrofit air-independent propulsion on Scorpene-class submarines and expand underwater sensor arrays across strategic chokepoints.